Category: World

KABUL: The Taliban claimed Friday to be in control of 85 percent of Afghanistan, including a key border crossing with Iran, following a sweeping offensive launched as US troops pull out of the war-torn nation. Hours after President Joe Biden issued a staunch defence of the US withdrawal, the Taliban said fighters had seized the…

MOSCOW: Russia on Friday said the Taliban controls about two-thirds of the Afghan-Tajik border and urged all sides in Afghanistan to show restraint. “We have noted a sharp rise in tension on the Afghan-Tajik border. The Taliban movement quickly occupied a large part of border districts and currently controls about two-thirds of the border,” Russian…

WASHINGTON: While the US acknowledges Pakistan as a “helpful and constructive partner” when it comes to Afghanistan, the shared interests of both the countries go well beyond that, media  quoted US State Department spokesperson Ned Price as saying during a press briefing on Thursday. He added that the US and Pakistan had shared interests in…

KABUL: Afghan government forces on Thursday wrested back control of a western provincial capital stormed by the Taliban a day earlier and hundreds of fresh troops have been deployed to the region, the defence ministry said. It said some fighting was continuing on the fringes of Qala-e-Naw, capital of Badghis province, which borders the central…

HERAT, Afghanistan: Plumes of smoke billowed over an Afghan provincial capital Thursday as fighting raged between the Taliban and government forces for a second straight day. The government flew hundreds of commandos into Qala-i-Naw, in northwestern Badghis province, the first regional capital to face an all-out assault by the Taliban since the United States stepped…

ANKARA: World food prices fell in June for the first time in 12 months, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said on Thursday. Following 12 consecutive monthly increases, the FAO Food Price Index slipped 2.5% from May, averaging at 124.6 points this June. The figure was still 33.9% above its level in the same…

  JOHANNESBURG: Jacob Zuma on Thursday began a 15-month sentence for contempt of court, becoming post-apartheid South Africa”s first president to be jailed after a drama that campaigners said ended in a victory for rule of law. Zuma, 79, reported to prison early Thursday after mounting a last-ditch legal bid and stoking defiance among radical…

BRUSSELS: Europe”s prestigious carmakers lead the world in perfecting the internal combustion engine — but the days of the petrol motor are numbered, and the continent is changing gear. On Wednesday next week, the European Commission will unveil its plan to reduce carbon emissions from new vehicles to zero within the next decade, to fight…